The Wandering Times
by Tannim Murphy
Summary: A story about Kenshin. And his friend Ranma. And wandering around a bit.


The Wandering Times  
  
Disclaimer: If I owned Ranma 1/2 and Rurouni Kenshin, I wouldn't be  
writing fanfics about them. So I don't. They belong to their  
respective owners. Please, I beg of you, do not sue me.  
  
Chapter 1  
  
---  
  
Two men were walking down the street side by side. One was a man  
dressed in a red and white kimono, and was carrying a sword at his  
waist with a small sack over his shoulder. The other man was wearing  
a more exotic look; a red Chinese-style shirt with loose-fitting black  
kung fu pants, and black slippers on his feet. The man wearing  
Chinese clothing kept his hair trimmed, save for the short pigtail  
that fell past the nape of his neck. The other man's hair was less  
kept, fiery red-blonde hair sprayed out in all directions like an  
orange weed. Most of its growth was held at bay in a ponytail that  
traveled down his back and slightly past his shoulder blades.  
  
These two men had the look of long-time friends. There was a ready  
look of expectance about both of them, as if they expected to be  
attacked at any moment. It also seemed that these two men trusted  
each other to guard each others backs in a long and drawn out fight to  
the death.  
  
"Yes!"  
  
"No!"  
  
"Yes!"  
  
"No!"  
  
The two men were also arguing heatedly with each other.  
  
"We are going to take the route through Tokyo!"  
  
"I say we skip this place and go right on to Kyoto!"  
  
"Tokyo!"  
  
"Kyoto!"  
  
"Tokyo!"  
  
"Kyoto!"  
  
"Tokyo!"  
  
"Look, Kenshin. I don't care what 'fond memories' you've got of this  
place. It's too big a city, and people are gonna to find out!" The  
man wearing Chinese clothing glared at the other man.  
  
"We're just passing through, Ranma. What could possibly go wrong?"  
The man wearing the kimono glared back.  
  
"Everything," sulked Ranma. "When have we EVER gotten a lucky break  
in either of our lives? Huh? Name ONE time."  
  
Kenshin glared silently at Ranma for a moment, before giving a small  
sigh. "I suppose you're right. But if what you say is true, then  
here is just as good as anywhere else, isn't it?" prodded Kenshin.  
  
"You gotta point," relented Ranma. He rolled his eyes. "We're gonna  
get in trouble whichever way ya look."  
  
Kenshin smiled sadly. "I knew you would see it my way."  
  
Before Ranma could remark on just how unfair life was, their  
conversation was interrupted by a shout.  
  
"Hold it right there!" spoke what sounded to be a young woman.  
  
Both men froze in their tracks.  
  
"Don't move... Battousai the Manslayer!"  
  
Ranma sighed with relief and turned toward Kenshin. Kenshin, however,  
was turning to look behind him in confusion. The girl who had spoken  
was pointing a bokken angrily at the two men.  
  
"Hey, Kenshin, it's for you," whispered a smirking Ranma.  
  
"Oro?" replied Kenshin intelligently.  
  
"I've finally found you," the girl continued. "You're much weaker  
looking than I thought you'd be, Manslayer!"  
  
Kenshin boggled at this statement, while Ranma guffawed.  
  
"You and your student should prepare yourselves!"  
  
Now both men looked at each other in confusion.  
  
"She thinks..." began Kenshin.  
  
"...that I'm your student?" finished Ranma.  
  
Before any more could be said on the matter, the young woman charged  
the duo with a battle cry. "HYAH!"  
  
The woman attacked the pair with a horizontal slash with her bokken.  
Both men jumped to avoid the attack in opposite directions; Ranma was  
able perch in a nearby tree, while Kenshin attempted to land on an  
abandoned shop's overhang. Unfortunately, this was an old part of  
town; the overhang gave away easily under Kenshin's slight weight.  
With a mighty crash, Kenshin was unceremoniously dumped onto the  
various buckets and other assorted wooden items that was under the  
overhang. The attacker turned to look in confusion at the fallen  
Kenshin.  
  
"Huh...? What...?" The girl walked over to where Kenshin was  
sprawled out among the buckets. "Could it be possible that you're the  
legendary Manslayer? I heard you killed three more people last night  
at once!"  
  
"I'm a wanderer. I am nothing but a wanderer. I'm merely a wandering  
swordsman. Do you honestly think I could kill anyone with a sword  
such as this?" asked Kenshin as he lifted his weapon by the sheath so  
that the girl could more easily pull it out to examine.  
  
The girl slid the blade from its sheath, scrutinizing the sword.  
"Huh? What's this? The blade is on the wrong side."  
  
Ranma leapt from his perch to land next to the girl. "That's 'cause  
it's a reverse-blade sword, ya tomboy" he told her.  
  
"Who are you calling a tomboy, you jerk?!" exclaimed Kaoru angrily as  
she turned to point her finger at the chest of the pig-tailed martial  
artist. Unfortunately she was wielding the reverse-bladed sword as if  
she would hold a normal sword; thus what would have normally been the  
dull side was, in fact, its edge. That edge was currently scant  
millimeters away from Ranma's nose as he franticly scooted out of the  
path of the wildly waving sword.  
  
"I'll have you know I'm considered the 'dainty flower of martial arts'  
around these parts, buster!" spoke Kaoru as she emphasized every other  
word with her sword hand, nearly splitting Ranma's nose in half a half  
a dozen times.  
  
"Okay! Okay! I believe you! Just stop waiving that thing around,  
you crazy chick!" shouted a franticly dodging Ranma.  
  
A police whistle sounded in the distance. Kaoru turned her attention  
toward it, much to the relief of a rather nervous Ranma.  
  
"There's something going on! It might be the real Battousai!"  
exclaimed Kaoru excitedly.  
  
As the woman dashed off, she emptied her hand in preparation for the  
upcoming battle. Unfortunately, in doing so, she negligently tossed  
the reverse-blade sword up into the air, causing both men to panic  
slightly.  
  
"You got it! You got it!" cried Ranma.  
  
"I got it! I got it!" answered Kenshin.  
  
With the expertise of a man whose eye-hand skills are extraordinary,  
Kenshin managed to catch the twirling blade in his sheath.  
  
Shnik!  
  
"Nice save, man."  
  
"Thanks."  
  
The pony-tailed swordsman and the pig-tailed martial artist looked at  
each other for a moment.  
  
"The usual way?" asked Ranma.  
  
"Sure," agreed Kenshin.  
  
Two voices spoke as one as they each held a fist out to the other.  
  
"Ready, set, throw!"  
  
Upon the third shake of both fists, Ranma split his hand into a pair  
of scissors, while Kenshin flattened his fist in an imitation of  
paper.  
  
"Ha! I win! You gotta save the girl this time!" exclaimed Ranma.  
  
Kenshin hung his head in defeat. He had lost this match.  
  
"I'll meet ya at the Inn ya told me about. Take your time, she's  
kinda cute," said Ranma as he winked at Kenshin.  
  
Kenshin blushed he turned away from Ranma.  
  
"Oh-ho! Falling for her already, are we?" chuckled Ranma.  
  
"It's not what you think!" protested Kenshin. "Anyway, I'd better see  
if she requires assistance."  
  
Ranma watched as Kenshin sprinted away.  
  
"Good luck pal. It's about damn time you got interested in a girl,"  
whispered Ranma to himself. His face clouded at some distant memory.  
"Well, I gotta find me that Inn... What were those directions again?"  
  
---  
  
At The Inn Later That Night...  
  
A morose-looking Kenshin stumbled his way into the room. Ranma turned  
to look at the man as he entered.  
  
"Hey, Kenshin! I thought you'd forgotten about me," joked Ranma.  
  
"Hardly. I was offered a place to stay the night," replied a sullen  
Kenshin.  
  
"So, why are ya here?" asked Ranma as he raised an eyebrow at the  
former Manslayer.  
  
Kenshin blushed. "There were... circumstances."  
  
Ranma raised the other eyebrow. "Eh? What gives?"  
  
"I... kind of..." Kenshin lowered his voice to a whisper. "...saw  
Miss Kaoru in the bath..."  
  
Ranma was speechless for a moment. But only a moment. In a flash  
Ranma was standing beside Kenshin and nudging him slightly while a big  
grin was on his face.  
  
"Kenshin, you dog, you! I didn't know ya had it in ya!"  
  
"It's not like that!" protested a madly blushing Kenshin. "I thought  
she was drowning and was determined to save her..." Kenshin's voice  
trailed off. It sounded like a weak excuse, even to him.  
  
A grinning Ranma patted a blushing Kenshin on the back. "Don't worry,  
it could have been worse. She didn't try to chuck a stone statue at  
ya, did she?"  
  
Kenshin looked at Ranma strangely. "Ah, no. She just locked me up in  
the storehouse. Stone statue?"  
  
"Oh, just one of my past experiences with women," shrugged Ranma.  
  
Kenshin looked disbelievingly at Ranma. "If those stories you say are  
true, you should write them down and sell them for entertainment."  
  
"Can't. Nabiki'd KILL me if I sold the marketing rights before her,"  
said Ranma with a grimace.  
  
"Well..." Kenshin trailed off, clearly still on the wary side. "I  
decided I had better be gone before the morning."  
  
Ranma nodded. "It's for the best." Changing the subject, Ranma asks,  
"So, didja run into that fake Battousai?"  
  
Kenshin's attitude completely changed as his demeanor grew serious.  
"Yes. He killed several police officers before I was able to reach  
him, and by that time all I was able to do was take Miss Kaoru out of  
danger. She had sustained injury, and I wished to get her to a doctor  
as soon as possible," said Kenshin calmly. "The oddest part was that  
he claimed to use the Kamiya Kasshin style of swordsmanship, which  
just happens to be the same style of martial arts Miss Kaoru's family  
teaches."  
  
"Wha, you think he's trying to frame 'em for some past grudge?"  
  
"It's possible that this false Battousai blames Miss Kaoru's father  
for something, and is taking it out on his descendants. I noticed he  
could only wield a sword in his left hand, as his right thumb had been  
broken pretty badly. I voiced my suspicions to Miss Kaoru that he  
might have been a former student, whom her father had disciplined."  
  
"Hey, if you're right, don'cha think he'll show up at Kaoru's place  
soon? I mean, ya did stop him from killin' her and all."  
  
Kenshin's eyes narrowed. "I believe that to be a great possibility."  
  
"I guess it's guard duty tonight," sighed Ranma irritably.  
  
Kenshin looked sideways at Ranma. "I could do this alone."  
  
Ranma waved a hand. "Naw. If this girl boils yer blood this much, I  
gotta see things through."  
  
"That's a pretty weak argument," said Kenshin as he smiled faintly at  
the pig-tailed martial artist.  
  
"It's all I got," glared Ranma.  
  
Kenshin's wry smile turned into a full-blown smirk. "I accept your  
help."  
  
"Who said anything about you accepting my help? I'm gonna help you  
whether you like it or not!" snorted Ranma.  
  
Kenshin rolled his eyes skyward as if to beseech the heavens as he  
walked out of the room. "May the kami save me from fools."  
  
"What's 'that' supposed ta mean?!" asked an indignant Ranma as he  
followed Kenshin.  
  
"Oh, nothing."  
  
"What do you mean, 'nothing'?!"  
  
"Nothing is nothing."  
  
Ranma thought over that statement for a few moments. "Arg! Wouldja  
quit it with the mind games?!"  
  
"What games?" asked Kenshin with an innocently expression on his face.  
  
"You know what I mean, scarecrow," retorted Ranma.  
  
The two friends bickered their way toward the Kamiya Dojo.  
  
---  
  
Kenshin shook a quietly sleeping Ranma awake. "Here they come."  
  
The martial artist, despite being startled awake, remained silent.  
  
"I'd suggest using battle strategy number three," whispered Kenshin.  
  
Ranma nodded silently, a very grim expression adorning his normally  
exuberant features.  
  
Kenshin glanced out of the corner of his eye at Ranma. "You DO  
remember what number three was, don't you?"  
  
Ranma grinned sheepishly and scratched behind his head. "Nope."  
  
The swordsman sighed. "Number three was you using your 'Silent Thief'  
techniques to get you close to the hostage and make sure they're  
unharmed while I take out everyone else," said a slightly irritated  
Kenshin.  
  
"Oh, that one. Why can't we use battle strategy number one?"  
complained Ranma as he took out a piece of worn cloth.  
  
Kenshin shook his head at the pig-tailed martial artist. "You would  
remember battle strategy number one, if nothing else."  
  
Ranma grinned at the pony-tailed swordsman. After a few moments  
muttering words to himself and waving the worn cloth around, he faded  
from view.  
  
Kenshin snorted as he watched with his eyes and other senses as Ranma  
disappeared from all forms of detection. It never ceased to amaze the  
swordsman how completely shielded Ranma was from even his heightened  
ki senses.  
  
He'd give the martial artist a few moments to get into position before  
moving himself.  
  
"Just don't let Miss Kaoru get hurt, my friend," prayed Kenshin  
silently.  
  
---  
  
Ranma mentally cursed. That Kaoru chick was already in the hands of a  
very large man, and the girl didn't look very happy at the prospect.  
The broken bokken on the floor was testament not only to the strength  
of the large man, but Kaoru's willingness to resist. He'd have to  
give that chick credit: she had guts standing up for herself like  
that.  
  
The martial artist silently bobbed and weaved his way through the  
throng of men. Despite the sheer size of the dojo, and number of men  
crowded together, Ranma was able to escape detection while making it  
to Kaoru's side in a matter of seconds.  
  
"Okay, whose sword wants a taste of this chickadee's flesh?" asked the  
big man who held Kaoru. Various random members of the gang responded  
to this declaration.  
  
"I know mine does!"  
  
"Me too!"  
  
"Yeah!"  
  
Kaoru tried to protest by reciting the teachings of her father. "A  
sword is a tool to save people with."  
  
"That's funny!" said Gohei, before laughing out loud. Several other  
members of his gang joined in the laughter. After a few moments,  
Gohei stopped laughing. "Maybe you should worry about saving yourself  
right now! What's wrong?" Gohei prodded Kaoru's chin with his wooden  
sheath. "Daddy's not here to protect you?"  
  
Kaoru knew complete and utter despair. She was powerless to fight  
back, and she could do nothing to avenge her father's name.  
  
Ranma was getting worried. Shouldn't Kenshin have been here by now?  
  
A man entered from the doorway. He was obviously part of the group,  
judging by his clothing, but he had a strained look on his face.  
  
Gohei turned to look at the man. "What's up, Nishiwaki?"  
  
"I- I'm sorreeeeee..." croaked the man as he fell over to reveal a  
stern-looking swordsman behind him.  
  
"It's the wanderer..." whispered Kaoru in amazement.  
  
"You'll put her down gently," said Kenshin with a maddening calm.  
  
"I remember you from yesterday," said Gohei as he narrowed his eyes.  
  
"I had a feeling I should have taken care of you right then."  
  
"You mustn't get involved!" cried Kaoru. "You're no match for him-  
ugh!" Her cries were cut off as Gohei jerked her to the side, away  
from Kenshin as far as possible.  
  
"Perfect," thought Ranma. With everyone's attentions fixed on  
Kenshin, Ranma would be able to steal Kaoru from the big guy without  
any troubles.  
  
Kaoru felt a strong pair of arms grip her and lower her gently to the  
ground. Before she could scream in alarm, a heavy hand gently placed  
itself over her mouth. A breathy voice whispered in her ear,  
"wouldn't want you to ruin my entrance, would I?"  
  
"Another fool that thinks a sword can bring out peoples' potentials?"  
growled Gohei.  
  
"No. A sword is a weapon. The Art of Swordsmanship is learning how  
to kill. What Miss Kaoru says is sweet and innocent talk that only  
those-"  
  
The dialogue was interrupted by a shout of "GET ON WITH IT!" from  
somewhere in the dojo.  
  
Kenshin nearly stumbled at the interruption. He had a whole speech  
planned and everything. He sighed slightly, recognizing Ranma's  
voice.  
  
Gohei growled under his breath. "Right. Get him!"  
  
"Okay boss!"  
  
"Yeah!"  
  
"I do not want anyone else to get hurt," said Kenshin as one last  
warning.  
  
"Ah, nobody is gonna get hurt," said one gang member confidently.  
  
"Somebody is gonna get dead!" spoke another excitedly.  
  
The entire mob of followers rushed toward Kenshin at once. His only  
reaction to the charge was to loosen his sword.  
  
Then, Kenshin struck.  
  
The swordsman moved with speed, grace, and accuracy borne of long  
practice, tempered with experience in battle. He flowed through his  
enemies like a scythe through a wheat field, cutting down everything  
in his path. Each stroke was so precise that not one, but several men  
would fall down at once, unable to rise again.  
  
Gohei grounded his teeth together in anger as he watched one man make  
mincemeat out of his entire gang.  
  
One of the men, smarter than the rest, dropped his sword and collapsed  
against the dojo wall. "He just got five men with one swing! It must  
be magic..." muttered the man fearfully.  
  
Kaoru, from her position at the back of the dojo, was busy analyzing  
Kenshin's fighting style. "He seems to be able to predict where  
people are going to move, and then get in front of them!" she thought  
in amazement.  
  
Something clicked inside of Gohei's brain. "Red hair... Cross-shaped  
scar on his cheek... It can't be..."  
  
The last of the hoodlums were dispatched with Kenshin facing away from  
Gohei, sword held high. Kenshin placed his sword over his shoulder as  
he turned his head to look at Gohei. "I forgot to say one thing.  
Battousai the Manslayer's style of fighting is not that of the Kamiya  
Kasshin School. It's an old style of swordsmanship, designed to face  
many opponents at once. The name is Hiten Mitsurugi. And without the  
reverse blade, it is slaughter with deadly swiftness."  
  
"He- he's the real Battousai!" thought Kaoru in shock.  
  
The large man attempted to toss the girl he was holding in his hand in  
preparation for taking on this man himself, only to discover that his  
hand was already empty. "WHAT?! What is this?!" he bellowed. He  
turned to see that Kaoru was across the dojo, seemingly confused at  
finding herself no longer captive.  
  
"No-one harms the lady," said a man as he literally faded into view  
right before Gohei's eyes. This new man was imposing in his presence,  
a feeling of confidence bordering on arrogance.  
  
Gohei's eyes widened as they beheld the magic manifested before him.  
His eyes narrowed in contemplation as he noticed the new man had  
neither a sword, nor any other kind of weapon visibly on him. Gohei  
made for what seemed to him a logical deduction.  
  
"A ninja, eh? Not like one of you to come out of the shadows. And  
one that practices the Empty Hand. How pathetic. You won't last five  
minutes against the likes of me, little man," boasted Gohei as he  
smirked at the presumed ninja before him.  
  
A cocky smile settled onto Ranma features. "Let's just get this over  
with. You're not even worth my time."  
  
Gohei roared as he charged the martial artist.  
  
Ranma slithered past the man's almost non-existent defenses like  
water. He didn't move so much as 'flowed' into his attack. With a  
casual flick of his wrist, Ranma broke the blade of the sword at the  
hilt. With a twisting of his body, his other hand grabbed onto  
Gohei's wrist and flipped the charging man headfirst into the ground.  
Ranma crushed the small bones located in Gohei's wrist as the man flew  
overhead.  
  
"AAAAAAAAUUGH!" Gohei let lose with a howl of anguish.  
  
A coldly smirking Ranma looked down at the broken man with something  
akin to pity. "Now, you'll never be able to hold a sword in either  
hand," snorted the pig-tailed man. "Not that you should have ever  
picked one up in the first place. You're a pathetic excuse for a  
warrior." The martial artist pinched his nose. "And take a bath!  
You reek!"  
  
"Uh, Ranma?" said Kenshin nervously.  
  
"Yeah?" asked Ranma as he turned to face Kenshin.  
  
"That was the hand that already couldn't wield a sword."  
  
Ranma's face froze in a mask of surprise at this announcement. He  
blinked once, then twice. "Oops?"  
  
Kenshin sighed. He walked over to the fallen form of Gohei, and with  
a flick of his sword broke several fingers on the man's left hand.  
"There, that should do it," muttered the pony-tailed swordsman.  
  
"Heh heh heh... Sorry?" chuckled Ranma weakly as he put a hand behind  
his head.  
  
"Oh my God, I don't believe it! He didn't kill anybody, everybody is  
just knocked out!" exclaimed the last man still awake in amazement  
upon examining the bodies of his fallen comrades.  
  
"Go to the police and inform them of everything this man has been  
doing," said Kenshin to the one man still conscious.  
  
The underling nodded hastily as he scrambled out of the dojo as fast  
as he could.  
  
"I was wondering when you were going to make your grand entrance."  
Kenshin grinned at Ranma.  
  
"Huh? What about YOU? Proppin' that guy up so he could fall  
dramatically to reveal the hero behind him. What's up with that?"  
Ranma grinned back.  
  
"Yeah, well, you interrupted me! I had this great speech all set up,  
and you just couldn't wait long enough for me to say finish saying  
it," sniffed Kenshin in an over-dramatic show of tears.  
  
"Who... Who ARE you two?" asked a stunned Kaoru.  
  
Ranma turned to look at the girl as if he had forgotten she was there.  
Perhaps because he had.  
  
"Um... We're your friendly neighborhood watch?" lied Ranma nervously.  
  
"You..." Kaoru pointed a finger at the pony-tailed swordsman.  
"You're the real Battousai the Manslayer, aren't you?"  
  
Kenshin looked sadly at Kaoru. He opened his mouth to speak, but was  
interrupted by Ranma.  
  
"Yeah, yeah, he's the Big Bad Battousai the Manslayer," grumbled Ranma  
as he began to pull Kenshin out the front door. "Big whoop, we're  
sorry, we're leaving already."  
  
"You... You JERKS!"  
  
Ranma froze in mid-stride.  
  
"You guys aren't going leave me here to clean this up all by myself,  
are you? I can't rebuild the Kamiya Kasshin style by myself. I told  
you before, I don't care about your past."  
  
"But now that word has gotten out, it would only cause you more  
trouble if you had the real Battousai staying here," said Kenshin  
sadly.  
  
"I don't want the Battousai, I want you, the wanderer-" Kaoru stopped  
herself as she realized she had said too much.  
  
Ranma grinned widely as he nudged Kenshin. "Ya hear that? She wants  
you, man!"  
  
Both Kaoru and Kenshin blushed heavily at Ranma's words.  
  
"And your student can stay here if he likes as well," said Kaoru as  
she kept her eyes firmly on the floor.  
  
"Well..."  
  
"C'mon, I'm tired of wandering. Why don't we settle down for just a  
bit?" Ranma poked Kenshin. "Maybe you'll want to stay here for more  
than just a little bit, eh?"  
  
Kenshin tried to gain what little dignity he had left. "Well, if you  
insist, I guess we can stay here."  
  
"Yeah, you just want to stay here because of the tomboy."  
  
Kaoru appeared beside Ranma and slammed his head into the ground. "I  
am not a tomboy, you jerk!"  
  
"You should not have said that to Miss Kaoru," said Kenshin as he  
smirked at the pig-tailed man's discomfort.  
  
Ranma muttered around the fist firmly planted between his eyes.  
"Someone gimme da number of dat truck, willya?"  
  
Kaoru looked up from her fist embedded in Ranma's face as she  
remembered something. "You know, I don't even know your names."  
  
"I'm Kenshin. Kenshin Himura," smiled the pony-tailed swordsman.  
"And the person you just flattened is named Ranma."  
  
"Oh! I'm sorry! I don't know what came over me."  
  
"That's all right, Miss Kaoru. Ranma has that effect on women."  
  
"Ororororo," said Ranma dazedly.  
  
---  
  
Author's notes: This is my first attempt at a 'buddy' fic. I hope  
I do Ranma and Kenshin justice. ^_^ C&C would be appreciated. 


End file.
